I haven’t gotten around to reading Regime Change yet although, after I read today’s essay, it has moved up the list. I think the essay is important reading in itself, precisely because the authors come with a professional intelligence perspective, thereby providing a take on the current presidency often missing in daily journalism. For sure, the current chaos will end but the damage the authors describe will take very long to repair. Speaking as a retired civil servant, if one assumes that comparable damage has occurred throughout the government, recovery, probably, will take decades.

Inside Trump's American regime change - Engelsberg ideas

The second Trump administration is defined by centralised power and a hubristic pursuit of personal legacy.

In view of how depressing the above is, I thought it only fitting that I add another short essay on why old guys like me still believe America remains a uniquely glorious idea. Proudly, I declare that in my long life I can remember hearing a few Alistair Cooke broadcasts on the radio and watching a large number of Alistair Cooke introductions to Masterpiece Theater on television. He was, absolutely, one of a kind.

Alistair Cooke and the art of reading America - Engelsberg ideas

Alistair Cooke’s radio broadcasts remain a study in how to interpret the dramas and complexity of modern America.